Naturally straight hair is the first type of hair. This kind of hair has more layers of cuticles which means the hair is more resistant to damage. That's a good thing but also a bad thing. This protection also means the strands of hair are more resistant to shaping or styling. When damaged, straight hair is dry and brittle and forms thin ends.

Straight hair comes in 3 subtypes; fine, medium and course. Hair that is fine and straight is usually thin, very soft and naturally shiny. Medium straight hair is more textured and has lots of body. Course straight hair is the most resistant to styling.

The next hair type is wavy hair. This hair is not quite straight and not quite curly. The strands of hair typically form S patterns in the waves. This kind of hair can be tough to curl and it may refuse to bounce at all.

There are 3 separate kinds of wavy hair. Just as with straight hair, wavy comes in fine, medium and course. The fine kind is actually able to be straightened or curled in normal circumstances. Medium hair has a harder time with styling and sometimes gets frizzy. Lastly, course wavy hair is very prone to frizzing and is very difficult to style.

Curly hair is our next type. It quite often is 'loopy' and makes a very distinct S pattern when you look and individual strands. It often has a lot of bounce, is soft and can be quite fine. The cuticles are formed smoothly and that yields a less shiny hair than straight or wavy. When wet, curly hair often straightens and oddly enough when the humidity gets high the curls get even tighter and frizz.

There are only 2 subtypes of curly hair. The first is loosely curled. This kind of hair looks almost straight when cut short. But when grown long, it usually has shiny big curls. The second subtype is medium to tight curly hair. This kind of hair form medium to tight cork screw type curls. It is interesting to note that quite often people with curly hair will have both subtypes in different areas of their hair.

The last kind of hair is called kinky hair. It is curled really tight, can be wirey and it almost always is very fragile. Kinky hair is not very shiny but it can have a subtle sheen to it. It is very soft and very easy to break because it has a low amount of cuticles. All of that adds up to hair that is quite difficult to grow long.

There are only 2 subtypes when it comes to kinky hair. They are S pattern and Z pattern. That refers to how the strands look when stretched. S type hair has a bit of moisture to it naturally. Z type hair has the least amount of moisture of any hair type.

There you have it. Ten unique and distinct hair types. Now, knowing this, it should be easier for you to decide exactly what specific type of hair you possess. That is important because you will get better styling results if you work with what nature gave you rather than against it. For example, if you have tight curly hair but you love the look of straight hair, you may not get the best results with a hair straightener. Or, if you have coarse straight hair but want to get tight curls, knowing that your hair will resist this type of styling helps you decide the best hair style for you.